Betteridge Sapphires - About Us
We are a family of four - Matt, Amber, Riley (7), and our latest edition Elise (1) Betteridge. We are avid fossickers visiting the C. Qld Gemfields since 2012. In 2018, we purchased a mining claim and spent as much time on the Gemfields as possible while working full-time jobs and raising our family. In 2021, we decided to follow our dreams. We moved to the Gemfields and founded Betteridge Sapphires.
.
Ethical Mining
Matt Betteridge
We are passionate about providing high quality, ethical Sapphires and Australian Gemstones. Our ethical mining operation means that Matt only uses hand tools to mine Australian Sapphires with minimal environmental impact. Once the Sapphire bearing wash has been collected into buckets, it is hand fed into our trommel and pulsator to process the gravel. The light stones are removed leaving only the heavy stones to sort through. Because of the rarity of Australian Sapphires, they are few and far between. Sometimes we will go weeks without seeing a facet grade stone. Sometimes we are lucky and will find a few in one batch.
Faceting
Once we find facet grade Sapphire, Amber carefully facets the gemstones using the Hall 3 Faceting Machine she inherited from her grandfather. Faceting is a time consuming artesian craft that can take hours or days to complete. The gem is carefully assessed for inclusions/flaws, preformed to shape and facets cut and polished using multiple diamond grit laps. Some of our stones are faceted by other reputable gem cutters and this is always disclosed in the stone descriptions.
Why quit your jobs and move?
Our main drive to make this lifestyle move was to make the most of our family time and start doing something we love (fossicking). Working full time meant that family fun times were few and far between. With this lifestyle after school and weekends are reserved for family fun times exploring our beautiful country and spending quality time together. Riley helps by having fun and finding insects (and some Sapphires).
We are excited to bring you stunning, locally found, ethically mined and faceted Australian Gemstones directly from our mining operations to you.
Thank you for supporting our small family business!
With Love,
Matt, Amber, Riley and Elise